Catalyst unit for lighters



June 16, 1942. G. P. SCHMITT 2,286,231

CATALYST UNIT FOR LIGHTERS Filed July 18, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet l A lIIAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIV/ INVENTOR. Gama: Eva/P Scum/r ATTORNEY.

June 16, 1942. p $HM|TT 2,286,231

CATALYST UNIT FOR LIGHTERS Filed July 18, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 2illllllllll'fi fillllllllll 'A AV UQA A AQ AWAEW 1 N VE NTOR. GE OEGEPHILIP 501M; r7.

BY 5 k ATTORNEY.

Patented June 16, 1942 CATALYST UNIT FOR LIGHTERS Application July 18,1939, Serial No. 285,129

Claims.

This invention relates to lighters which employ a catalyst for ignitingcigarettes and the like, wherein the vapor of alcohol or othervaporizable liquid is employed for effecting such reaction upon thecatalyst, in the presence of air, as will render such catalystincandescent, so that a cigarette or the like applied thereto and drawnupon, may be ignited. More particularly this invention has reference toimprovements in the catalyst unit consisting of the catalyst and partsassociated therewith for adapting it to form the constituent of thecatalytic lighter.

Lighters of this character, exemplified in United States Letters PatentNo. 2,005,477 and No. 2,005,478, both dated June 18, 1935, provide micaor metallic disc protective covering means for the catalyst. As setforth in these patents catalytic lighters operate on the principle thatplatinum black or other catalytic compound can be made incandescentunder the influence of vapor of certain volatile liquid in the presenceof atmospheric air. The temperature resulting from the heat produced bythe chemical reaction of the vaporizable fuel and air mixture in thepresence of the catalyst is sufficiently elevated to ignite thecigarette when applied to or near the catalyst, and drawn upon.

The catalyst is contained in a holder, and positioned above and belowthe catalyst in the holder are perforated discs. Patent No. 2,005,478discloses a thin, perforated disc, which may be of mica, positionedbeneath the catalyst, through which the vaporizable fluid may pass forcoaction with the catalyst; and a thin, perforated metallic disc used asa shield or front covering for the catalyst which enables a cigaretteapplied thereto to be quickly ignited, and at the same time protects thecatalyst which may be in the form of spongy platinum composition, fromrupturing 'while in use. It was found that the greater degree ofstiffness in a metallic disc, over that possessed by a mica disc and thefiner the mesh (to a limited extent) render the metallic disc a moreeificient guard.

In the presence of a platinum catalyst, water results from the chemicalaction of vaporizable fuel and air (the fuel, being for example, alcohol'vapor), and the catalytic action taking place in the lighter causeschemical reaction between the various elements. Experience has taughtthat in dealing with a catalyst employed for lighting purposes (which isa very delicate instrumentality) its efliciency is greatly impaired bypermitting oxidation to take place. In fact, in a great many instances,lighters of the prior art refused to function as a result of suchoxidation. For these reasons it has been found by experiment, that it isnecessary to provide a covering or shield for the catalyst which willresist oxidation and withstand high strength at elevated temperaturesand resist chemical attack; and therefore, act as a vehicle to preventthe formation of moisture upon the catalystthe nerve center of the Ilighterand further to preheat the mixture of fuel and the catalyst forits next use and operation.

It is, therefore, one of the features of this invention to provide thecatalyst with a cover or shield made of a metal or alloy that offers ahigh resistant to corroding influences, resistance to high temperatures,and withstands attack by chemical reagents.

It is known that chromium not only increases the immunity to corrosion,but, at the same time, improves the mechanical properties of thematerial containing the same in several important respects.

The heretofore used screens or covers for the catalyst, after thelighter had been in use, but a few times, became impaired ordisintegrated under the high heat and on account of oxidizing, with theresult that holes appeared in the screen large enough to cause parts ofthe catalyst to fall out of the holder, since the catalyst is but aceramic mass made of compressed platinum black; By reason of the factthat the catalytic material and the screen above it covers acomparatively small area the screen becomes very hot and if not madeofthe proper material besides oxidizing and disintegrating, cannotwithstand the intense heat. The material to be selected as a screen forthe catalyst has to stand immense heat developed by the catalyticmaterial as well as resist oxidation over a period of time.

It has been found that by making the catalyst cover or shield ofnickel-chromium an instrumentality is produced which takes advantage ofthe excellent combination of oxidation resistance and high strength atelevated temperatures of nickel-chromium, and which, therefore,admirably withstands the influences brought about by the chemical actionof the vaporizable fuel and air in the presence of the catalyst. The useof this alloy causes the moisture to dry out and the catalyst to bepreheated for next use keeping the fuel near the catalyst in a vaporizedcondition, thereby increasing its efficiency It is, therefore, anotherobject of the present invention to make the catalyst cover or shield ofnickel-chromium material.

The area of the cover or shield for the catalyst and to which the tip ofthe cigarette is applied, is relatively small. Where a wire screen isemployed as the cover or shield this necessarily limits the size of wirewhich may be used. This screen cover is preferably woven of fine wire toprovide very fine meshes for securely keeping the catalyst element,which is susceptible to crumbling under pressure, from straying out ofits confined space in tiny fragments, as might be the case if the meshesare coarser, to facilitate the ignition of the cigarette by minimizingthe heating mass of the screen, and to prevent foreign matter fromcoming in contact with the catalyst. It is readily understood that byreason of the limited area of the screen cover and by further reason ofthe advisability of employing a finemeshed screen cover or shield, forthe catalyst, a selection of the proper material becomes of stillgreater importance.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a cover orshield for the catalyst element having a mesh of suflicient fineness asto prevent minute fragments of the catalyst from escaping therethroughand foreign matter from being entrapped in the meshes.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a guard abovethe screen shield covering the catalyst to safeguard against too muchpressure being applied by the cigarette upon the catalyst and screenwhile the cigarette is being lighted. The screen being flexible, if toomuch pressure is exerted by the cigarette against the screen, the latterin turn will press against the catalyst and may injure the same. Theguard prevents such injury.

It is still a further object of the present invention to provide slotsin the catalyst pill cup for permitting the fuel vapors contacting thecircumferential wall of the catalyst pill.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent asthe specification proceeds.

With the aforesaid and other objects in View, the invention consists inthe novel selection, combination and arrangements of parts and materialshereinafter described in their preferred embodiments, pointed out in thesubjoined claims, and illustrated in the annexed drawings, wherein likeparts are designated by the same reference characters or numeralsthroughout several views, and in which:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of a holder with the catalyst and itsassociated elements.

Fig. 2 is a. vertical sectional view taken through line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Figs. 3 and 4 are views showing guards in modified forms employable inthe invention.

Fig. 5 is a horizontal sectional view through a catalyst pill cup andpill showing the same in their respective relation and further showingvapor passage flutes in the cup.

Fig. 6 is a top plan view of a combined cup and guard.

Fig. 7 is a vertical sectional view of Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a top plan view of a catalyst holder and associated elementsin another form.

Fig. 9 is a vertical sectional view of Fig. 8.

In the form of the invention shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the catalyst whichmay be a perforated block, pill or pellet of spongy platinum compositionis contained in a suitable cup or holder. Beneath the catalyst is a wirescreen preferably made of an alloy of nickel and copper, an example ofwhich is known as Monel metal and forated disc ll of suitable mesh abovethe catalyst is located the top cover to shield the catalyst, which isin a form of a wire screen preferably made of an alloy of nickel andchromium, an example of which is known as Nichrome. A retainer guardring preferably made of an alloy of nickel and copper permanentlylocates the top covering and the catalyst in the cup or holder. Sincenickel alloys of the Monel type are fairly resistant to scaling andoxidation at elevated temperatures, it has been found practical to makethe lower screen and the retainer ring of such alloy. The wire screensabove and below the catalyst are preferably woven of fine wire toprovide very fine meshes, say, for example, 40,000 meshes per squareinch with a thickness of wire of .002 inch.

The purposes of such finely meshed or perforated plate are to securelykeep the catalyst element, which is susceptible to crumbling underpressure, from straying out of its confined space in tiny fragments, asmight be the case if the meshes are coarse, to facilitate the ignitionof a cigarette or the like by minimizin the heating mass of the screen,and to prevent foreign matter from coming in contact with the catalyst.

In Figs. 1 and 2 there is disclosed a cup or holder l0 preferably madeof suitable plastic material which will glow upon heating of thecatalyst. This holder has a parallel side-wall section II and a flaredside-wall section [2 continuous therewith. The cup I0 is provided with abottom portion l3 having a relatively large opening [4. Seated on theannular flange 22, surrounding opening 14 of bottom I3 is a wire screenor perand. made preferably of an alloy of nickel and. copper, such, as

for example, what is generally known in the trade as Monel metal.

Above screen I! is located the catalyst which. is here shown as bein inthe form of a pellet, block or disc l5 and which may be composed of asuitably spongy platinum composition or the like. The catalyst may beprovided with a plurality of perforations l6. Above catalyst I5 islocated the protective top covering or shield 19 for the catalyst, whichmay be in direct contact with the latter.

Covering I9 is a perforated disc or plate or wire screen of suitablemesh and made preferably of an alloy of nickel and chromium, which maybe in the proportion of about nickel and 20% chromium, and which mayfurther be of the type known in the trade as Nichrome. The covering l9and catalyst l5 are held in place by means of a retainer ring 20preferably made of wire of metal alloy known as Monel, or the like. Thisretainer ring 20 is sprung into place and thereby keeps the upper andlower wire screens with the catalyst in between, in their proper places.Above the retainer ring 20 and the opening 2| formed by the retainerring 20 is a cigarette rest or guard 23. This guard may be in anysuitable form of which are shown in Figs. 1, 3 and 4 and indicatedrespectively by the numerals 23, 23a and 23b. Guard 23 will prevent thecigarette from contacting directly the wire screen IS. The object inusing these alloys is, that they withstand high heat, have mechanicalendurance and offer resistance to oxidation and chemical attack as thetwo screen members are heated considerably during use of the lighter.

In Fig. 5 there is shown a modification in the form of a solid pelletIlia, the vapor passages being in the form of flutes l6a in theside-wall Ila of the cup or holder la. The purpose of this modificationis to overcome a possible weakness within the pellet caused byperforations or similar passages therethrough.

The embodiments of Figs. 6-9, inclusive, show the guard or cigaretterest 25 as being a solid member preferably in three-leg arrangement asshown. In this case the contacting of the cigarette with the catalystfor lighting purposes will not permit the cigarette to exert anypressure upon the wire screen 25 and therefore, upon the catalystpreventing crushing or other injuries to the catalyst [5.

As illustrated in Figs. 6 and '7, the cup or holder 28 is madepreferably of transluscent material thereby causing the same to glowwhen the catalyst is made incandescent as hereinbefore stated.

The guard 25 forms a shoulder 29 which acts as a rest for the edge ofthe cigarette. By reason of the guard 25 being integral with the cup 28it will be found necessary to insert the pellet IS with its top coveringscreen 26 and the lower screen 2'! into the opening 38 of the cup 28through the bottom of the cup. The lower screen 2'! is preferably madeslightly larger in diameter relative to the pellet 15 thereby fittinginto an enlarged groove 3! The pellet l and the upper and lower screen26 and 21 are held in their respective places by retainer ring 32,having a large central opening 33 for the passage of the fuel vapors.The cup 28 is preferably flared at its upper edge to facilitate theentrance of the cigarette for lighting purposes. It is understood thatthe holder or cup 28 may be made of metal.

In Figs. 8 and 9, the cup or holder M is flared at its upper edges as atll and has a turned in bottom 42 forming a shoulder for the support ofthe catalyst unit. Large opening 43 is provided in the bottom 42 for thepassage of the vapors. In this modification the guard 25a is madeintegral with the retainer ring 45 which is employed to retain the upperand lower screens 21, 26 and the pellet l5 therebetween in their properrelation. As shown at 25, 25a the bottom portions of the guard legs aretapered as at 44 thereby providing edge contact only with the upperscreen 25, the purpose mainly being to avoid blocking of the fuelpassages.

This application is a continuation in part of copending applicationSerial No. 55,150, filed December 19, 1935.

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, it is apparent that improved simple, practical and inexpensivedevices for the purpose intended are provided. It is apparent, however,that immaterial changes and modifications may be made by skilled personswithout departing from the true spirit and scope of the invention asoutlined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a lighter employing vaporizable fuel and a catalyst for coactiontherewith, a holder enclosing said catalyst, a pair of heat andcorrosion resisting members disposed at opposite sides upper and lower,respectively, of said catalyst, each of said members comprising a wirescreen having closely woven wires the meshes of which being sufficientlyfine as to prevent minute fragments of said catalyst from escapingtherethrough and foreign matter from being entrapped in said meshes,said upper member being made of a composition of nickel and chromium,and means for retaining said upper member in said holder.

2. In a lighter employing vaporizable fuel and a a catalyst for coactiontherewith, a holder enclosing said catalyst, a heat and corrosionresisting member disposed above said catalyst, and a guard above saidmember with which the tip of a cigarette or the like may engage forignition by said catalyst, said guard having tapering wallssubstantially merging in an edge adjacent the upper face of said member,said member being made of a composition of nickel and chromium.

3. In a lighter employing vaporizable fuel and a catalyst madeincandescent by coaction therewith, a holder enclosing said catalyst, aheat and corrosion resisting member disposed over said catalyst, saidholder being made of a material capable of glowing when the catalyst ismade incandescent, said member being made of nickel and chromium.

4. In a lighter employing vaporizable fuel and a catalyst for coactiontherewith, a holder enclosing said catalyst, a heat and corrosionresisting member disposed above said catalyst, said member comprising awire screen having closely woven wires the meshes of which beingsufficiently fine as to prevent minute fragments of said catalyst fromescaping therethrough and foreign matter from being entrapped in saidmeshes, said member being made of a composition of nickel and chromium,means for retaining said member in said holder, and a guard above saidmember with which the tip of a cigarette or the like may engage forignition by said catalyst, said guard extending over the face of saidscreen.

5. In a lighter employing vaporizable fuel and a catalyst for coactiontherewith, a holder enclosing said catalyst, a pair of heat andcorrosion resisting members disposed at opposite sides upper and lower,respectively of said catalyst, each of said members comprising a wirescreen having closely woven wires the meshes of which being sufiicientlyfine as to prevent minute fragments of said catalyst from escapingtherethrough and foreign matter from being entrapped in said meshes,said upper member being made of a composition of nickel and chromium,said holder having a circumferential edge surrounding said catalyst,said edge being recessed to permit passage of the fuel to the adjacentwall of said catalyst.

GEORGE PHILIP SCHMITT.

